One of the properties looked for in such connectors is good electrical contact: it is thus desirable for the contact member to be resiliently applied with as great a force as possible. The connector must thus be deformable. A second desired property is that the connector should be deformed as little as possible when being put in place. Thus, for example, connectors for motorcar spark plugs are sometimes removed at an angle relative to the axis of the connector (because of difficulty of access) and this can permanently deform the connector by exceeding its elastic limit. The connector can then no longer be used. Connectors are provided with locking means to limit their deformation in order to avoid this situation. Finally, such connectors must be a snap-fit. After being pushed into place using a reasonable amount of force, they must remain securely snap-fitted to the terminal.
Finally, manufacturing costs should be as low as possible. Thus, where possible, the connector should be made in one piece. This is also favorable from the reliability point of view.
Male-female or female-male connections have already been made for applying high contact pressures. However, they either require both connector portions to be suitable for very limited deformation only, thereby requiring both portions to have corresponding tight tolerances in their dimensions and further requiring accurate handling, or else such connectors require a mechanism or shape which is bulky, e.g. a lyre shape, or finally the connection may comprise a plurality of parts, one for tightening and another for making contact, in other words an extra locking member is required.
Preferred embodiments of the present invention provide a terminal-connector capable of applying a high clamping force and capable of a high degree of deformation, e.g. three to five times that which is current in this type of connector component.